When Natasha Bogucki rolled out onto the smooth wooden floor November 4th for the 2013 World Roller Figure Skating Championships, she was thrilled to share the rink with over 600 competitors from 23 different countries.

As the 2013 Canadian National Artistic Roller Sports Champion, she and her coach, Lloyd Williams, traveled to Taipai, Taiwan to participate in this important event. To prepare, Natasha practiced up to 12 hours per week this past year with Lloyd and her other coach Kim Argento. She skates as a member of the Calgary Artistic Roller Sports Club in Calgary, while working at Lloyds Recreation (no relation to coach Williams) and studies fulltime at university.

Natasha’s specific event is Junior World Class Women’s Figures. In Taipei, she skated four different figure components and placed 15th out of 24 competitors. The young women she skated against hailed from such countries as Italy, Argentina, Brazil, USA, Australia and others.

This was Natasha’s first time competing at Worlds and I wondered how she felt to have achieved her goal of participating at this major event. Natasha says she was proud to represent Canada, but was very nervous. “I did not want to let down my coaches or my family who have worked so hard with me. Truthfully, I am a bit disappointed in my performance because I made a few mistakes that cost me a higher placement, but I am hopeful that I learned from the experience and will be able to do better next time. I appreciate the support that Roller Sports Canada and Lloyds Recreation provided to me. It was an experience that I will never forget.”

After taking a well-deserved break, Natasha plans to strap on her skates again and prepare for Worlds next year to be held in Reus, Spain.